Dunking With Wolves
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Will the Minnesota Timberwolves be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline?

By Andrew Ites

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - MAY 21: President of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas and Head Coach Ryan Saunders of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - MAY 21: President of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas and Head Coach Ryan Saunders of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Minnesota Timberwolves
PHILADELPHIA, PA – OCTOBER 30: Robert Covington #33 of the Minnesota Timberwolves reacts against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center on October 30, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

Sellers

The Minnesota Timberwolves have Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns locked up to long-term deals, so they can afford to be patient in building up this young core.

Even with rumors of KAT’s unhappiness earlier this season, Towns can’t really force his way out of town as he’s in the first season of a five-year deal.

The Wolves have drafted pretty well over the last few years, and Jarrett Culver has started to show why Minnesota was so aggressive in trading up for him in the draft with numerous strong performances over the last few weeks.

If Gersson Rosas wanted to add another asset to go along with Wiggins, KAT, and the rest of the Wolves’ young core, it would probably come from trading away Robert Covington.

RoCo had a pretty rough start to the year after coming off of a season-ending knee injury last year, and it looked like Minnesota would be selling low on the three-and-D veteran forward if they decided to trade him. However, Covington has started to look like himself over the past month by flying around on defense and creating a ton of steals, and he’s shooting nearly 40 percent from three during the month of January.

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There are plenty of contenders who would be happy to bring in a player with RoCo’s incredibly valuable skillset for a championship run, including the Rockets, Sixers, and Mavericks according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania (subscription required.)

If they could get a decent first round pick or a promising young player for Covington, it’d be difficult for the Wolves to say no even though RoCo is a great fit alongside Wiggins and Towns.

But the Wolves should not give up Covington for just any trade package because he’s on a good contract through the 2021-22 season and he provides great leadership on this young squad.

If Minnesota finds a Covington trade that drastically improves their future outlook, then I would pull the trigger because I don’t see this team making the playoffs this year.

If they don’t, the Wolves could simply stand pat and set themselves up for a potential move this offseason while rebuilding this roster around Wiggins and Towns.

Next. Timberwolves: 3 intriguing trade targets. dark

The Wolves’ decision to be buyers or sellers this trade season isn’t necessarily a binary one, but I would lean towards the seller option this year and try to add more future assets for veteran talent.